


Upon the Heath

by LBarnes737



Category: Original Work
Genre: Action/Adventure, But I have done research, F/M, Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, I am not an expert on Asia Minor culture, Romance, myths
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 19:07:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7400065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LBarnes737/pseuds/LBarnes737
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Andrew Taylor saw his childhood friend, Emily White, drown in a lake a year ago and her death has haunted him ever since. </p><p>Except she didn't.</p><p>When Andrew is pulled into the watery depths of that same pool on her anniversary he becomes entangled in an entirely new world no one ever knew was connected to ours - a world filled with giants, gods and a deranged King with a terrifying curse.  </p><p>All Andrew wants is to find Emily and go home.</p><p>Welcome to the world of Asia Minor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Few Things To Note

1\. The majority of the characters named in this fictional tale actually existed and most events that take place are based on a mixture of history and myths surrounding Asia Minor around the time of 700 BCE.

2\. I am not an expert on Asia Minor so liberties have been taken when constructing character personalities and cultures.

 

More information surrounding the history and geography of the time will be included at a later date.

 

Ἀσπάζομαι! (Aspádzomai = Welcome)


	2. Prologue - The curse of the King

Midas was a king of great fortune who ruled the country of Phrygia, in Asia Minor. He had everything a king could wish for. Midas thought that his greatest happiness was provided by gold and he spent his days counting his golden coins.

One day, Dionysus, the god of wine and revelry, passed through the kingdom of Midas. His foster father, a satyr named Silenus, became very drunk and wandered away. When he grew tired Silenus decided to take a nap in the famous rose gardens surrounding the palace of king Midas. There he was found by King Midas' servants and brought before him. King Midas, who was a devout follower of the god Dionysus, instantly recognised the satyr and invited Silenus to stay for a while. They feasted for eleven days after which Midas returned Silenus to Dionysus. The god of celebration, very grateful to Midas for his kindness, promised to satisfy any wish Midas asked of him. Midas though for a while and then he said: I hope that everything I touch becomes gold. Dionysus warned the king to think well about his wish, but Midas was positive. Dionysus could do nothing else and promised the king that from that following day everything he touched would turn into gold.


	3. Chapter 1 - Andrew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet Andrew

Rain dribbled down the window panes in a cacophony of pitters and patters as it so often did in this part of the country, a soothing background to the droning voice within the room as the invidulator bid the students to pack up their belongings and leave the exam hall. Andrew sighed into his arm to muffle the noise, his head resting heavily on his desk as he gave up on keeping his eyes open, letting the noise of the school staff dismissing each individual row carry him further from the reality of the assembly hall.

He was disturbed from his near slumber by the rattling and screeching of metal chair legs scraping across varnished wooden floors. He glanced up to see the students in his row, the one furthest from the exit, hurrying chaotically to pick up their pens and water bottles. Slowly, he joined them, taking care to pack everything he had brought into the exam hall neatly away before rising from his seat. He quickly patted down his blazer, comforted by the familiar smothered crackle of paper in his breast pocket. He finally shrugged on his raincoat and followed the rest of his year mates out into the drizzle. He sighed gently at the cool drops that fell on his face before throwing the hood of his jacket over his head. 

“Andy, wait!”

Andrew turned back to the hall entrance and grinned as Daniel, Alex, Harry and Rebecca trotted down the steps towards him, each struggling into their own anoraks as the rain slid off their shoulders. Rebecca wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight hug, giving him a firm squeeze. “We’re going to miss you,” she smiled as she let him go, allowing herself to easily slot into Harry’s side whose arm automatically made itself comfortable around her waist. 

“Yeah mate, don’t forget to write once in a while,” Daniel clapped him hard on the back, “you are going to miss such a great summer. The things Alex and I are going to get up to,” Daniel trailed off as his gaze went dreamy. 

Andrew laughed and poked him teasingly in the ribs, “careful there, I think you’re drooling”.

“I reckon Bex might have a fit without you here to back her up,” Alex laughed, “remember last year with the gardening?”

Rebecca shook her finger at him in mock warning, “I swear Alex, if you end up messaging me telling me you’ve got the chainsaw out again to do some more extreme gardening, I will be buying that bubble wrap I promised.”

Andrew shook his head in exasperation, “give it up Bex, his parents tried that plan and look where it got them.”

“Someone needs to explain that to me again,” the expression on Harry’s face was a mixture of amusement and confusion, “I still don’t understand what you were doing that ended up with you in A&E.”

The embarrassment radiating off the perpetrator couldn’t be dampened by the pouring rain and Alex rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly while Andrew and Rebecca rolled their eyes. Rebecca patted her boyfriend’s side and promised a retelling of the extraordinary tale later on.

“You’ll have to come up for a week or so,” Daniel said, “The spare bedroom is practically yours anyway and mum and dad adore you more than they do me and Eddy.”

“Eddy and I,” Harry butted in, though no one took much notice. Harry was a stickler for proper English and correct grammar was practically drilled into him by his dad who had a position as a professor of literature in one of the city universities nearby. While Harry lived with his mum and step dad out in the country, he usually spent several weeks a year during the holidays and some Christmases with his dad so the habit had never completely died. Their year group had quickly learnt that Harry’s off –handed remarks were precisely that and found it rather amusing.

Andrew smiled, “that’s because I offer to help them with the dishes and clearing up after they’ve had me for dinner whilst you sit your lazy arse on the sofa.”

“I prefer to think I’m saving my energy for beating you at Assassins Creed later on.”

“Anyway,” Rebecca jumped in before a whole new discussion could begin, “I know we already had all the official goodbyes and whatnot but I saw this the other day and the others agreed that it would be a brilliant going away present so”. She paused as she started rummaging around in her rucksack, her hand battling its way through all the unnecessary revision books she had brought with her for before the exam, until her arm had all but disappeared in a convincing re-enactment of that one scene from Mary Poppins. She cried out in triumph as she dragged something out from the materials dark depths and placed it in Andrew’s hand. She smiled gently as the other three grinned. “I thought you might like to keep one of us along with one of her when you move away and the book is thin and pocket sized so they won’t get so crumpled.”

Andrew opened the miniature photo album and stared at the picture of his four friends smiling mischievously out of the page at him, Daniel and Alex pulling silly faces at the camera while Rebecca beamed out and Harry laughed, a moment frozen in inked paper. Rain drops pattered onto the plastic film protecting it and Andrew quickly removed the paper photograph of a young smiling girl out of his breast pocket and slipped it into the empty first slot where the rain couldn’t reach her. He took a moment to admire the two together before he replaced it back into the pocket and thanked his friends earnestly. There was one last round of goodbye hugs and back patting’s and promises to write and visit before Andrew finally extracted himself from the group and with a last wave trudged into the watery landscape.

Usually, the walk home took fifteen minutes at a moderate pace, but, despite getting wet, Andrew slowed his gait to take in one of his last looks at the familiar streets. He had walked down past these same houses every day for the last eleven years and found himself quite unable to image how strange life was going to be without them. Both his mum and dad had been talking about moving for a number of years but it wasn't until a couple of months ago when his mum had been offered a promotion that they agreed between them that it was finally time to put the house up on the market. Since Andrew was about to finish his final year of high school it had seemed like the best time to do it and Andrew’s therapist had been very positive about the entire affair, insisting to both Andrew and his parents that the move would be good for him, even recommending a colleague close to where they were going as his replacement.

Andrew walked up the drive to his house, sparing a brief glance for the large "sold" sign standing outside it before shaking off the remaining water droplets from shoulders on the porch and twisting his keys in the lock. Taking off his sopping wet shoes he quickly stripped out of his coat and shouted a greeting to his parents who stopped their relentless muttering about last minute box checks and any forgotten items they might not have thought to pack, to yell back a hasty response as acknowledgement of his return. Andrew's lips twitched upwards at the corners before bounding up the stairs to his near barren room. For the last four years his parents had reverted to the naturally overprotective creatures that every sixteen year old has nightmares about, and while the showered affection was nice within reason, the constant demand to know his whereabouts had quickly begun to grate on his nerves, a point he regularly brought up with Jordan. His therapist was a very compassionate listener, even if Andrews teenage problems and insecurities were as interesting as mud to listen to, which despite reassurance Andrew had no doubt they were. Jordan had been quick to point out how their irrational behaviour was both understandable and justifiable, teaching Andrew techniques to keep his volatile temper under control around them. It was somewhat of a relief to finally have them preoccupied with something other than him and Andrew enjoyed it immensely. 

Andrew sat at his desk and gently pulled the his new pocket sized photo album from his blazer pocket, opening it to the first slot to stare at the neatly cut picture of a laughing young boy and girl and held it up to his eye level, tenderly caressing the outline of the brown haired girl staring out of the image at him with dark eyes sparkling with mirth and one arm wrapped around the smaller boys shoulders. Andrew could barely reconcile the laughing boy with himself in his head on most days, finding the ability to recall his past emotions to be too painful to contend with. A pain which had slowly numbed to a sharp ache as the years had passed.

"Only one day left Em," he murmured at the picture, setting it down carefully before moving to change out of his school uniform, experiencing a thrill only understood by those who know that they will never have to wear something so constricting ever again.  
It had been four years since the disappearance of Emily Joanna White, the case still officially classified as a disappearance due to the lack of a body ever being found, despite the widely accepted assumption that she had drowned in a lake hidden within the heathland.

Emily had been a very outgoing girl, with a bright personality, a brilliant sense of humour and the confidence very few prepubescent girls maintained at twelve years old. It was perhaps this confidence that inspired her disregard for the opinions her peers held of her and which, by the tender age of three, had her dragging around a shy blonde boy into every kind of trouble imaginable. Sensitive had been the word adults had used to describe him, like that meant anything to children who by nature, tend to exploit any weakness in the character of others. Despite being childhood friends, both Emily and Andrew's parents had been surprised at how well their two very different children, with distinctly clashing personalities, had gotten along with each other, a friendship that had not diminished with age despite later running in different social circles. Both being single children, they had each adopted the other as their sibling. Andrew could still remember how at one time Emily and he had stuffed woodlice into Antony Williams' school bag after he had purposely knocked the paint pots over her drawing during their art lesson. They had continued to deny their guilt to Miss O'Conner while sporting matching dirt smears on their knees and hands from where they had knelt to capture the small insects. Andrew had felt bad for the little creatures afterwards, a sentiment Emily shared, after all who would want to be subject to the sudden touch of Antony's clammy hands and high pitched shriek. They hadn't been able to stop giggling later and every time they saw Antony carefully check his bag before reaching in with his hands.

Another time had seen Andrew running in a panic to fetch their parents because Emily had tripped on a particularly sturdy rock hidden by the heather and had hit her head in the fall. While there had been many tears initially after a short visit to the hospital Emily had emerged with a large bandage and sporting a wide smile. She later confided to Andrew that the hospital was an amazing place where adults gave you as many lollies as you wanted. She continued with regular visits to the hospital from then on, enough so that the nursing staff knew exactly which lollipop flavour was her favourite and which seat was hers in the waiting room.

The heathland continued to be Emily and Andrew’s favourite playground. They went up there nearly every day after school and knew it well enough that their parents were happy to let them run around up there by themselves provided they followed specific rules like by when they had to be home and recite what to do when approached by a stranger.

It was on one of these occasions when they were twelve, while they were up on the heath that they wandered further than they had before and came across a pool of water (Emily argued that it was a lake but Andrew insisted that the resemblance it was more similar to a rather large pond than a lake). Emily had been eagerly investigating its shore, excited when she discovered what looked like stepping stones leading a short way into the water. Andrew had been distracted by a small chirping noise and had gone further up the hill, searching the bushes for the source of the sound, discovering a baby Stonechat that had obviously been dragged from its nest by something (he had been eagerly researching heathland wildlife for some time, hence why he knew the species of the small bird). Being distracted and a fair distance from the pool he hadn't paid attention to the splashing coming from behind him. On turning around to head back and show off his find he had been just in time to see Emily sink beneath the water’s surface. He had raced down to the water’s edge, putting the Stonechat down before wading into the cold water, searching for her blindly. After many long minutes of panicked searching he emerged from the water and ran home, still soaked and crying.

A search was organised, the efforts of which were doubled after they dragged the water only to come up with no body, hoping that maybe Emily had managed to crawl out of the water and had wandered off. After three days only a few remaining police officers remained searching. Emily's parents had split up after her funeral and her mother moved away.

Andrew completely shut down, only caring to interact with the Stonechat he began to raise. His responses were sharp and short if he responded at all. His parents had organised weekly therapy sessions for him, hoping to help him work through his grief. These sessions increased to three times a week after, during a class at school, he had violently attacked one of his classmates when he had been subject to all their false sentiments and tears over Emily's death. 

The rest of the class with the exception of his closest friends, had avoided him after that much to his relief.

He was diagnosed with violent mood swings and extreme anti-social behaviour. Both lessened over time and with careful anger management sessions. His friends had been a godsend, and had come up with a continuous stream of innovative new ways to cheer him up and keep him occupied. His parents had been reluctant to let him go back up on the heath but his therapist convinced them that returning to the place of the accident would help him confront and come to terms with his emotions. Personally Andrew thought it was a load of rubbish.

Andrew casually threw on a t-shirt and pair of jeans before going over to the cage in his room to feed Rock, the name of the Stonechat he had found that day. He had been disappointed when he realised that he wouldn't be able to return the baby bird to the wild. The only good to come out of the accident was that his parents were much more lenient and easily consented to him keeping the chick.

Rock chirped cheerily at him, nibbling gently at his fingers as he reached in to stroke the birds puffed up breast. Ensuring the cage was securely locked, Andrew went downstairs. His mum was fussing and rummaging around in one of the boxes next to the door, muttering lowly to herself. Andrew coughed gently to get her attention and told her he'd be out for a little while.

His mother frowned. "I would really rather you didn't," she said obviously still distracted by the way she kept glancing over at the boxes, "your dad is about to order takeaway for our last night here, and I don't want you sniffling all the way in the car tomorrow".  
"Mum, it’s our last night, and if we're ordering, you know what I like."

"Yes, but-"

"Mum," something in his voice caught her attention because she straightened up and gave him her full attention in the same way his dad always did when they were talking. "I want to say goodbye."

Her eyes softened instantly and she nodded. Andrew gave her a brief hug before grabbing his coat and trainers and walked back outside, waving at his dad who came over, squeezing his shoulder firmly and giving him a small smile in encouragement, knowing without words where he would be going.

***

Andrew followed the familiar path through the heather, weaving easily through the sharp heathland shrubs. The drizzle from before was becoming increasingly heavier. Walked all the way up to the water’s edge, he crouched beside it with a heavy heart.

"Hey, Em," he whispered, trailing his fingers through the water, "I've come to say bye. Tomorrow’s the big day. The college I've applied to looks good. It has an amazing art department and the amount of sports clubs there, well, you'd love it." He sank his fingers deeper through the water and into the mud beneath it which wafted ghostly between his fingers. "The biology department looks great and the teachers seem nice enough so hopefully that'll be fine. I'll have to try and break myself of the habit of always getting into trouble that you drilled into me." Andrew smiled grimly at his fingers through the water, balling his hand into a fist to capture some of the mud before releasing it again. "The weather is as bad as ever so you’re not missing much here."

Finally he took in a deep breath, "I'm going to miss you," he choked, desperately swallowing around the ball lodged in his throat, "I know I promised I'd always come and visit you and I'll come back every year but I really think this is going to be good for mum and dad, and for me. But please, please believe me that I am so, so sorry-"

He stopped abruptly because as he had lifted his eyes to stare at the water’s surface something caught his eye. Something pale and long and Andrew was breathing heavily because that was a hand, that was a human hand lying in the water and without a single thought to his own safety he waded into the cold water for a second time in his life, the rain continuing to pelt down on him. He could see the hand that was definitely attached to a body begin to sink beneath the surface again and he pushed himself forward faster trying to reach it. It was because of his single mindedness that he did not notice the mud beneath his feet had begun clawing at his legs, wrapping themselves loosely around his ankles. He did however notice it when they yanked him beneath the surface. 

Shocked, he forgot to try and struggle to the surface until the next tug pulled him down even further into the watery depths. Andrew snapped out of his surprise and began to struggle in earnest, kicking desperately at the tendrils wrapped around his feet. He broke free of the water and gulped down one massive gasp of air but was pulled back under before he could scream for help. The water around him was becoming more violent as he used his hands to try and pry away whatever it was that was slowly making its way further up his leg, its grip tightening and pulling. Had Andrew cared to observe his surroundings he might have been confused by how unusually deep the pool was or how the water around him seemed to have developed rapid currents, but all he could focus on in that moment was the mounting need to breathe and the fear building in his gut. His lungs were on fire, his body was freezing and the grip on his legs felt like it was cutting off his circulation. Just as he began to believe he might die here in this watery hell and wondered whether or not Emily had experienced a similar sensation when she died, the tendrils suddenly released him and he experience a whole new kind of fear as whatever breath was left in his body was punched out by the violence of a tumbling, disorientating current. Andrew couldn't tell where he was, which way up he was. He swam desperately, hoping beyond hope that he would reach the surface even as the current dragged him down and shook him in its grip.

And then it spat him out.

Andrew gasped as he was almost literally thrown from the water, taking in a gulp of fresh air before his landing punched it out of him. He groaned painfully and rolled on his back to try and get more air into his lungs. He lay staring at the bright blue sky as he truly enjoyed and appreciated breathing for the first time in his life.

Wait, blue sky? Hadn't it been raining?

But before he could process this he heard a deep rumbling growl and tilting his head up to look his eyes widened in shock and no small amount of anxiety because no more than ten feet away from him, complete with yellow eyes and razor-like fangs, sat two huge lions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what did you think? I hope you enjoyed it :)  
> I will be grateful for any feedback regarding this chapter since I'm really struggling to get Andrew's voice right. All comments are welcome.


	4. Chapter 2 - Zoe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Welcome to Pessinus, Phrygia and current residence of King Midas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have just re-written this chapter. I hope it reads better than before.

“Deflect! Evade and deflect!” Anchurus yelled as he swung his sword at the padded torso twisting out of the blade’s range while thin arms brought up twin curved blades in a desperate attempt to deflect the incoming blow. There was little resistance as the heavier broad blade easily broke through the dagger’s defences. Anchurus stepped in quickly, hooking padded shins with his right foot before sweeping them off the ground and grabbing his opponent’s collar, holding the sword point to their exposed throat. Heavy panting filled the training grounds. Anchurus released his grip on the collar and re-positioned his practice sword back to his side as Zoe collapsed unceremoniously to the sand covered ground with a loud grunt, daggers still in hand.

“You’re still trying to block my attacks,” Anchurus scolded, lifting the blade to examine the area where it had gotten caught on the curved daggers, “I’ve told you time and again that you’ll always lose if you do that. You want to use your opponent’s strength against them.”

“Easy for you to say,” she panted as she sprawled out across the floor, “you’ve been doing it for years.”

He looked down at her, “inexperience- ”

“yeah, yeah, yeah,” the sixteen year old butted in quickly, “inexperience is the excuse of the lazy and incompetent. You’ve said it a thousand times and you’ll probably say it a thousand times more before I leave.”

Anchurus shook his head in mock despair, “I obviously did something horrible in my last life to deserve a little sister that was such a menace.”

She laughed, eyes crinkling at the sides with merth, “the gods gifted you with the biggest favour of your life when they gave you me brother dearest. Who else would keep you in line if I weren’t here?”

Anchurus shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know. I think Lityerses does a pretty good job of keeping me on my toes.”

Zoe snorted derisively, “Our half-brother can’t tell the difference between his face and his arse on the best of days.”

“you give him far too little credit.”

“oh, he’s not unintelligent,” Zoe acknowledged, “and his skills with a sword are on par with your own. That doesn’t make his personality any better.”

Anchurus grinned teasingly at her, “you’re just holding a grudge because of that worm incident.”

The shudder that went through Zoe’s body as she sat up wracked her whole frame. “They were maggots not worms,” she hissed in outrage, “and what kind of civilised human being hides maggots in their little sister’s bread? I’m pretty sure I ate a few of them.”

Anchurus threw his head back and laughed while Zoe tried to shake the sudden queasiness from her mind. The conversation lulled into silence as they both became lost in their own thoughts.

“I don’t like it,” Zoe muttered, dropping the hilt of her left blade to rub at her throat where moments before the tip of the practice sword had rested, “It feels like I’m letting whomever I’m fighting win if I just run away.”

Anchurus sighed and crouched down in front his little sister, “That’s what you should be doing. Look nine times out of ten your opponent is going to be stronger, better equipped, and more experienced than you are. I’m not teaching you how to win a duel, I’m teaching you how to escape and defend yourself in case something happens and you have no one to protect you.”

“I know,” she pouted, “I still don’t like it.”

Anchurus chuckled and got back to his feet. He spun the practice blade effortlessly around his body. “Zo, you might be the most learned person I know, and in the event of a war we’d be lucky to have you advising strategy on the council, but your skill with a weapon leaves much to be desired.” His face grew very sombre as he met her, “I don’t like thinking about you being unprotected in such a foreign, faraway place.”

Sheathing the daggers in their respective holsters at her waist Zoe looked up at her oldest brother and smiled fondly at him. “The Assyrian Empire isn’t that foreign. It’s less than a month’s journey from Gordium to Dur-sharrukin, less from here in Pessinus, so you can easily come and rescue me if something happens. And I won’t be unprotected,” she reassured him for what felt like the hundredth time, “Senna is more than capable of looking after me.”

“Firstly, even riding as fast and as light as possible it would still take me just under two weeks to get to Dur-sharrukin during which anything could happen to you. Second, Sennacherib’s reputation may precede him as a warrior and tactician,” her brother admitted, “but as the prince of an empire he won’t be around all the time and the idea of second rate guards being all that stands between you and possible death worries me and will continue to worry me long after you’ve gone.”

He held out his hand and hauled her back to her feet. She dusted down the sand from her breeches. “I know that,” Zoe said gently without looking up, “I know that as crown prince he has far more important matters and ambitious plans to attend to, but his ambition is precisely what I like about him,” she met her sibling’s gaze evenly, “and I don’t plan to be a useless wife that just sits prettily on his arm. You know he intends to move the capital to Nineveh once he’s King? He thinks it’s ridiculous that his father is spending so much on recreating the Babylonian gardens in Dur-sharrukin when the northern border is constantly under attack by the Cimmerians.”

Anchurus shrugged, “Sargon has always cared more about appearances than welfare, but he’s no fool. After all it was him and not Sennacherib who defeated the Babylonians and brought the Assyrian Empire to its greatest height yet.”

“Don’t you think it’s odd that he hasn’t taken Senna on any of his campaigns?”

“Well they’ve never had the best father-son relationship.”

Zoe hummed in agreement and eyed her brother considerately. He was very tall considering their heritage, after all their father, and supposedly their mother, was rather short. Years of training outside under the hot sun had darkened his skin and built up the muscles in his arms. At the age of twenty-four years he was already the target of many an eligible young lady. Any other father would have already forced him into accepting a proposal, but Midas was a very liberal king and was more than happy to allow his heir time to choose his future spouse. Zoe considered herself to be rather fortunate as well despite the fact that her own marriage would be the product of political convenience.

Four years earlier her father, in an attempt to secure support in the event of an invasion by a larger Cimmerian force, had proposed an alliance between the kingdom of Phrygia and the growing Assyrian Empire. King Sargon II had been pleased to accept the offer under the condition that the alliance be forged through a political marriage between his only living son and king Midas’ daughter. Luckily due to recent events at the time Midas had been unwilling to send her off to a different country quite so soon and had negotiated a four year long betrothal period, as oppose what would traditionally have only been two, to not only allow him to spend more time with his “precious little girl”, but also give the children time to adjust and get to know one another.

Sennacherib had been Zoe’s senior by seven years and had been nineteen when they had been first introduced. Needless to say that the two hadn’t had much in common with one another and initially conversation had been limited to social niceties. As they spent more time in one another's company though, affection between them grew.

"When is his convoy arriving today?" Anchurus asked.

Zoe barely hesitated before replying that Sennacherib was expected around noon, which gave her a few more hours to freshen up. "You're not to spend the entire time challenging him to practice duels out here," she scolded teasingly, knowing her brother liked to put the foreign royalty through his paces.

"Of course not, sister mine," Anchurus said, the corner of his mouth twitching in a barely restrained smirk. She glared at him threateningly and he spun gracefully on the balls of his feet, extending his arm in gentlemanly invitation to her. She sniffed haughtily but accepted the escort and they strode back towards their Pessinussian residence. "I'll just show him what a painful death he can expect in the event that you return home in tears."

For all his years of training, Anchurus was still unable to evade the swift blow Zoe dealt to the back of his head.

* * *

The nail of her middle finger dug into the skin of her thumb absently as she focused on keeping her expression as neutral and dignified as possible, a nervous habit that had developed as her court training forced her to abandon the far more comforting feeling of chewing her bottom lip. She glanced down from her position stood to the left of the throne to observe her father, whose entire being managed to radiate an air of dignified pride and authority despite his relaxed posture, resting as he was with most of his weight leaning on his left arm rest. Anchurus, as heir to Phrygia, stood to the right of his father’s throne, fingers drumming quietly on the beautifully carved golden back of the lavish seat. Her step-brother stood to attention at the bottom of the raised platform in the position of the captain of the royal guard, surveying the room with disinterest, though Zoe knew him well enough to see the sharp, ruthless cunning that lay beneath the façade. Lityerses' eyes flicked towards her and she froze under his gaze, feeling uncannily like a mouse trapped in the hypnotic glare of a snake. She had always found her step-brothers gaze unnerving, shrinking away from the burning madness he savagely controlled and suppressed in them. Usually she went out of her way to avoid him and his needless cruelty but in this instance close contact was unavoidable. And by close contact she meant being in the same room as him.

She heard a light cough from her left and snapped out of her stupor. Anchurus gave her a brief warm smile and her stiff body instantly relaxed. Anchurus spent much of his time in the training grounds with Lityerses and soldiers practicing self developed combat techniques and testing battle strategies often suggested to him by her. When Zoe wasn't being tutored or was reading her way through the latest scrolls purchased for her on the market, she would often sit and watch them from a window. It was fascinating to see her brothers work off each other in a deadly intricate dance, Anchurus' dark complexion and instinctual but fluid movements greatly contrasted by Lityerses' fairer appearance but crude and sharp ones.

The only time she was ever permitted to enter the yard was during her self defence lessons supervised either by Lityerses, who despite her misgivings about him was an excellent teacher, showing her how to use the environment around her resourcefully and to its deadliest effect, or Anchurus, who preferred to use physical demonstrations. After the fifth kidnapping attempt in three months the king had decided that contrary to tradition he would allow his daughter to learn some basic swordsmanship, enough so that as a last resort she would be able to defend herself against hostile forces. The court advisors had been very agitated by this declaration and quietly protested but her father would not budge on the matter and commissioned a pair of twin dagger blades to be made from the most skilled swordsmith in Gordium. Zoe always wore them in a belted holster beneath her loose robes.

Zoe faintly nodded her head at Anchurus, a small smile spreading over her face.

She started slightly as the door to the court chamber rooms was opened dramatically and she immediately adjusted her facial expression and posture, keeping her clasped hands in front of her and her head raised with as much arrogant confidence as she could muster. The princess of Phrygia could not be seen to be anything less than the proudest, most powerful woman in the room.

A man of the similar age to Lityerses entered through the large palace doors. His being radiated authority and behind followed a large procession of embassies, advisors, servants and slaves. The man walked down the corridor to the foot of the raised platform in dignified silence and stood waiting as one of his elder companions rushed forward and cleared his throat loudly.

"Your majesty king Midas of Phrygia, Son of Gordius, blessed of the goddess Cybele and richest man of the known world, I present to you his Royal Highness the crown prince Sennachcherib of the Assyrian Empire, Son of Sargon II, successor of his late brother Shalmaneser V, Son of Tigalath Pileser III." The man knelt respectfully before the king, head bowed and fisted hand atop his heart, his entire escort knelt respectfully behind him.

King Midas motioned with his hand for the prince to rise while his people remained still on the ground. "You honour us with your presence your highness," he spoke, and while Zoe could not see her fathers expression, she could hear how pleased he was in his voice, "it has been too long since your last visit."

"Your majesty is too kind." Sennacherib replied graciously.

There was a moment of tense silence before a booming laugh resounded through the hall. The king chuckled heartily as he stood from his thrones and descended the short steps to pull the young prince into a hearty embrace, his golden robes seeming to bury the man despite being a head taller than the king. When they pulled away from each other both were grinning as were the rest of the dignitaries in the room and the atmosphere relaxed into comfortable comradery. Zoe could barely restrain the childish grin that threatened to appear. Anchurus greeted his fellow royalty with a hearty clap on the back grinning wildly as the two old friends joked about the stifling formalities that came with visiting foreign countries. Before they could exchange too many pleasantries Midas hooked his arm around Sennacheribs shoulders and spun him to face the platform once more. "Zoe," he cried merrily, gesturing proudly with one hand, "come and meet you're future husband".

Zoe smiled down at Sennacherib as he gazed up at her, his eyes widening as he took in her appearance for the first time in two years. He slowly disentangled himself from her fathers grip and glided up the steps until he stood but one below her. "You've grown" he muttered gently, delicately lifting her hand up to press his lips to the back of it, "how have you been my betrothed?"

Zoe desperately hoped no one noticed the fierce blush that she could feel crawling up her neck, "all the better for seeing you, my prince."

"Come," her father said, smile still resting easily on his face, "let us retire to our private chambers," he winked playfully as he rose up the steps along with both his sons and pulled back the curtain behind the throne. "Ensure our guests companions receive all they need," he said absentmindedly to his retainer who bowed deeply before rushing off to alert the necessary palace staff.

Still holding her hand, prince Sennacherib lead Zoe gracefully after her father. As they passed through the heavy curtain obscuring the door to the private royal living quarters Sennacherib whispered quietly to her, "all the better for seeing you?"

"Oh be quiet," she muttered, blushing harder and giving him a nudge to the ribs with as much dignity as she could maintain when he sniggered, "Magnus, assured me that that was the proper way to greet foreign royalty after a long period."

"It probably was. Several hundred years ago," the prince said in a mockingly solemn voice before chuckling, "you really need a new tutor Zo, preferably someone much younger than ancient Magnus. How old is that stuffy old man?".

Zoe huffed in mock annoyance, turning her head away as though insulted. She didn't disagree with the prince but she held a certain fondness for her old tutor and felt she should at least put up an act on his behalf. She was startled when gentle, calloused fingers lifted to her jaw and lead her head back so she could meet the gaze of affectionate dark eyes. His face was unusually close to hers and her breathe hitched slightly at their proximity. Sennacherib seemed just as surprised as she was though neither made any move to break the suddenly static charged atmosphere between them.

A loud purposeful cough made them start, Zoe's heart racing suddenly for an entirely different reason as she glanced sheepishly at her family who were watching the two of them with a mixture of barely disguised glee and incredulity.

"Maybe we should leave you two alone to catch up," Midas suggested wiggling his eyebrows at the couple in a way that made Zoe both want to kiss him for the fantastic idea and bang her head against the nearest wall for the mortifying implication. Sometimes her father made her want to die of embarrassment. Anchurus wore an expression closer to disapproval than amusement, normally warm eyes narrowing at his soon-to-be in-law.

"Yes," he said, "perhaps the rose gardens? They are beautiful this time of year," which was her brothers special way of saying, you're not going anywhere I can't keep an eye on you.

Their father nodded in approval, "yes, wonderful idea. We can catch up at dinner Senna, no need to rush things after all." He turned and waved a gloved hand at Lityerses, "get one of the guards to escort them would you?" and with a flourish of his golden cloak, continued down the hall way.

"Nothing inappropriate you two, you hear me?" called Anchurus over his shoulder as he was pushed down the corridor by Lityerses who sniggered.

"Ignore him," her step-brother yelled at Sennacherib, "don't do anything I wouldn't."

"You would though" cried Anchurus as they rounded the corner, "that's the whole problem!"

Once they were gone, Zoe and Sennacherib stared at each other for a full five seconds before they burst into childish giggles which quickly escalated to full bellied laughter. The assigned guards found them several minutes later bent over and clutching their stomachs as every time their laughter subsided one glance at each other had them falling into a completely new fit of giggles.

* * *

"This place hasn't changed."

After wandering around the gardens for a while both royalties had taken refuge in the shade of the scotts pine towards the back of the grounds. The guards stood several meters away with their back respectfully turned. Zoe looked up smiling at Sennacherib at his comment who was still standing and surveying the sea of roses that surrounded them.

"Not to you I suppose," she said, "but every time we visit here I keep noticing little changes in things. I wonder how much it will have change the next time I come back here," she held his gaze, "from Assyria."

Sennacherib knelt next to her gently placing his hand over hers, "you'll love the gardens in Assyria Zo. Father is currently constructing a garden in Dur-Sharrukin to rival those of Babylons."

Zoe frowned up at him, "I thought your father was away reconquering the Tabal people."

"He is," Sennacherib agreed, relaxing next to her, "its really me whose overseeing it but, you know, fathers idea-"

"fathers credit" they said simultaneously. They grinned at each other again before Zoe's expression suddenly became concerned, "are you sure you can afford to be away then? Whose ruling at the moment?"

Sennacherib waved his hand at her dismissively, "my representatives are quite capable of looking after themselves for a few weeks while I meet my future bride. My father insists that this visit will help maintain good relations with the Phrygian Kingdom."

Zoe looked at him, schooling her features into a blank expression so as not to give away her disappointment, "was that the only reason you came? To maintain good relations?"

He looked at her in surprise, replaying his words in his head before seeming to realise how they had sounded, "I have been thinking about you for the last two years Zo, of course I wanted to see you," he sighed, "but circumstances being what they are, I still feel uneasy leaving, even for such a short amount of time." He lifted his hand to her face, gently pushing back a loose strand of hair and smiled, "have I told you yet how beautiful you've become? I still remember you as the girl you were, with your hair worn loose and now I'm faced with a woman more than worthy of becoming my queen than any other maiden I have ever met."

She grinned at him and gently patted down her hair, checking to make sure there were no other stray strands. "I hope you appreciate all the effort I've gone to for you," she said with mock severity, "the Ornatrices spent hours fussing over my head this morning, it took twice as long as usual thanks to Lityerses."

"Lityerses?"

"He called one of my slaves to his room and then locked her in. No one knew where she’d gone until several hours later and by then we’d already put out a price on her. She was dragged in sobbing on her knees by two soldiers hopping to claim the reward only an hour before you arrived."

Sennacherib laughed, "That scoundrel. Your brother sure does know how to pick his moments."

Zoe huffed disdainfully.

Neither of them removed their entwined hands from the other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi. I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. Not so sure how I did with Zoe and Sennacheribs chemistry so please let me know how that read. I fully intend to revamp this chapter later to bring in a little more character development.  
> All reviews welcome!  
> Thank you


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